Bamber Bridge captain impressed by club's young loan stars

Blackpool youngsters Ewan Bange and Rob Apter have arguably been the talk of the NPL Premier Division so far this season.

Striker Bange leads the way in the league’s goalscoring charts having netted 10 times, while Apter has drawn comparisons to Manchester City and England star Jack Grealish and has also notched six goals himself.

Brig have also benefited from the skills of midfielder Dylan Boyle, although he has now returned to parent club Fleetwood Town, while young striker Akiel Raffie has gone the other way to bolster Brig’s forward line.

And in another major coup for Brig in recent weeks, boss Jamie Milligan has managed to entice forward Joe Rodwell and defender Lewis Coulton from PNE on loan.

Former Tangerines ace Wilson – who is one of Brig’s longest-serving players having arrived at the club four years ago – admits it is exciting to play alongside such talented players.

“Ewan and Rob are part of my card school so I have got to know them personally,” said Wilson. We have also got Joe and Lewis from Preston and Akiel from Fleetwood.

“They have all come in and done well and hopefully they will carry on exciting the fans.

“I hope they have got good careers ahead of them.

“I think the fans will say that Brig have not had many players like them in the past.

“They are so exciting to watch. Obviously Rob and Ewan have really impressed.

“Ewan is the top goalscorer and Rob is really direct – when he gets the ball you just know, he’s going to go at the full-back and a couple of times this season, teams have taken the full-back off.”

Brig went out of the FA Trophy on penalties to Dunston UTS on Saturday, but they responded in fine style on Tuesday night by brushing aside Whitby Town 3-0 at the Sir Tom Finney Stadium.

Wilson found himself on the sidelines for that match having been sent off for two bookable offences on Saturday, but he is available for this weekend’s trip to Stafford Rangers.

“I know the pitch at Stafford won’t be great,” said Wilson. “It will mean the game will be a proper battle but we will go there full of confidence after the great win we had on Tuesday night.”

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